WINNEMUCCA - Being a life-long Winnemucca resident and a graduate of Lowry High School Class of 1993, the community and school have impressed me once again.
The outdoor high school sports schedule was thrown into disarray last week as heavy smoke settled in the valleys of Washoe, Douglas, Carson, Storey, Lyon and Churchill counties, forcing the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association to cancel all outdoor sports in those counties.
While sports like cross country, tennis, girls golf and soccer were all but wiped out, a handful of football games were rescheduled, and that is where Winnemucca and Lowry High School come into the picture.
The scenarios worked out perfectly, as the Buckaroos opened their season a day early on Thursday, Aug. 29, with junior varsity and varsity games against Battle Mountain. As it turned out there would be two more games to be played at Jerry Tobin Field.
Remembering last weekend was a four-day holiday due to Labor Day, trying to find help could have been a mess, with the addition of the two Division I matchups on Friday, Aug. 30, and Saturday, Aug. 31.
Well, with the support of teachers across the district and students from Lowry that was not a problem. With the first week of school complete they could have easily taken off from Winnemucca to enjoy one last weekend of freedom.
The matchup between Douglas and Reno on Friday, Aug. 30, turned out to be the best game of the weekend in northern Nevada. The two schools battled back and forth, before the Huskies held on for a 28-21 victory over the Tigers, with the help of a last-second interception in the end zone.
Jerry Tobin Field is becoming a second home for Reno, who have made the trek to Winnemucca for the past three years to scrimmage against Lowry and Elko. The Huskies were just in town on Saturday, Aug. 24.
The Huskies could not be more gracious and thankful for the opportunity to play the game. They just wanted to get on to the field and play. As coach Dan Avansino told the Reno Gazette-Journal, "It just makes you thankful that we were able to play the game. It's a beautiful later summer night; it's just the way it's supposed to be."
Except for a few Douglas fans that took their anger out on Lowry students at the ticket gate, it was a pretty good night. And to the Douglas fans - really - you are going to cuss out a bunch of students because you did not want to pay to get into the game?
While having put on four football games in three days, Lowry was still a hopping place with another sport. The annual State Farm Insurance Volleyball Classic, which featured eight teams, took place last weekend as well.
With seven volleyball teams and four football squads, trying to find locker room space was a little tricky, but everything worked out.
The weekend came to a conclusion on Saturday afternoon as Damonte Ranch and North Valleys set up shop in Winnemucca. If you were there, it looked like the two schools were small colleges with all the equipment they brought.
Once again both schools were just happy to be playing and I lost count of how many thank you's came from coaches from the schools. It helps when the Lowry administration tells them to just get here and we will take care of everything else. That is exactly what happened.
With temperatures hovering in the mid 90s, the game wasn't as exciting as the night before, with Damonte Ranch defeating North Valleys 49-0.
With the game over, the praise still came from both teams, thanking Lowry for being a class act.
Now I may be biased because I have lived in Winnemucca all my life and graduated from Lowry. The school is one of the best in Nevada and has always welcomed guests. I will flat out say I am a Blue and Gold guy and I love the school, its kids and administration.
I am sure the NIAA is grateful for Lowry stepping up to take in the extra games and letting other schools the opportunity to play.
Winnemucca Publishing sports editor Tony Erquiaga can be reached via email at t.erquiaga@winnemuccapublishing.net.
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